STOP SELLING ME THE 2026 YANKEES. LET THEM EARN IT FIRST.

I love the Yankees. That is precisely why I am tired of being told how much I am supposed to love this 2026 Yankees team.

There is a difference between rooting for the uniform and swallowing every story the organization wraps around the men wearing it. I want them to beat Boston on Tuesday. I want them to win the World Series. But I am not going to pretend that 93 wins erase what I have watched for six months, or that a postseason berth turns every underperformer into a folk hero. A ticket to October is an opportunity. It is not a personality transplant.

The Yankees have won despite losing Aaron Judge for most of the season. That is real. Cam Schlittler and the pitching staff have given fans plenty to admire. Ben Rice has hit 41 home runs. There are players here who have earned their applause, and there is a reason to believe this club can win a short series. But a record cannot make me feel something the baseball itself has not made me feel.

And too much of this Yankee baseball has felt like a sales pitch interrupted by strikeouts.

Look, I'm about to go on a ramble, but that's why you come to Bleeding Yankee Blue, right? There is a difference between winning and believing. I know that doesn't make alot of sense, but let me explain.

We start here. Remember 1996? Derek Jeter hit .314. Bernie Williams hit .305 with 29 homers and 102 RBIs. Paul O’Neill hit .302 and drove in 91. Joe Girardi, the catcher nobody marketed as an offensive savior, hit .294. The club hit .288, scored 871 runs and struck out 909 times. It won the World Series.

Through 161 games this year, the Yankees were hitting .235, with 739 runs and 1,480 strikeouts. They had hit 223 home runs, 61 more than the entire 1996 team. Those are different eras with different league-wide offensive conditions; raw averages alone do not settle which lineup was better relative to its competition. They do tell you what it has felt like to sit through an inning. In 1996, a hit could become another hit. In 2026, you can spend a lot of time waiting for one swing to redeem a parade of empty at-bats.

The ’96 club had imperfections. O’Neill did not hit in that postseason the way he did in the regular season, and Girardi was no slugger. That is the point: nobody needed to pretend they were something else. You knew what those guys brought, you watched them bring it, and eventually they delivered the last win of the year. Affection followed the work.

This 2026 organization seems to want the affection up front. So, in short, stop telling me who to love.

Look, Anthony Volpe was a neat story to initially. Local kid. Homegrown shortstop. It practically wrote the promotional copy itself. Then the games kept happening. In 56 big league games this year, before his August demotion, he hit .240 with one home run. The Yankees handed shortstop to George Lombard Jr. That was an admission, in the language that matters most, that the old plan was not good enough. And thank god they made this decision.

Volpe did decent in Scranton. He hit .264 with an .906 OPS in 37 games, came back when Jazz Chisholm Jr. was hurt, and hit a grand slam in his return. I cheered the hit. I still refuse to be told that one big night settles three years of arguments about his bat. Volpe once again, and predictably, hasn't done a thing since.  Look, the bottom line and the point I am trying to make is a fan can wish a player well and reject the insistence that he is a cornerstone before his performance says so.

That is where the marketing grates. The Yankees can promote a young player. Of course they can. But they cannot schedule a fan’s emotional attachment like a bobblehead giveaway. When the image gets ahead of the player, every commercial, every reassuring quote, every invitation to believe feels less like celebration and more like an instruction to ignore your own eyes. And I think that's what bothers me most about this 2026 team. Much of it is like fake news.

Look at Austin Wells. Wells presents the same problem without the hometown fairy tale. He was batting .186 after Friday’s game. You can tell me about his defense and the demands of catching, and I will listen. You can tell me catching is hard, and I will agree. But you cannot ask me to watch a regular in the Yankees’ lineup struggle to get above .185 and act as though this is a minor aesthetic complaint. Girardi hit .294 for the 1996 champs. Nobody needed a brochure explaining why a hit from the catcher mattered.

The criticism belongs with the people who keep assembling and endorsing the roster, too. Wells did not draft himself. Volpe did not make himself the face of a campaign. The front office and the manager decide how long a bet gets to occupy the lineup and how they explain it to the people paying to watch.

It is my opinion that Brian Cashman has had years to build a club whose weak spots do not keep arriving as familiar surprises. His defenders can point to 93 wins and a playoff berth, and they are entitled to. He also deserves credit for talent that has helped this team survive Judge’s injuries. But that is not the end of the accounting. A general manager does not get graded only on whether enough of his bets hit to reach a Wild Card Series. He gets graded on the holes fans could see coming, on the cost of carrying them, and on whether October exposes them again.

How many seasons are fans supposed to watch the Yankees sell potential where production is required? How many times are they supposed to hear that a struggling regular is close, that a new piece might be the answer, that the next stretch will show what this club really is? Hope is part of baseball. Hope cannot be the entire roster-building strategy of the New York Yankees.

And do not confuse this complaint with a demand for nine .300 hitters. I am asking for a front office to look honestly at its own team, then speak with the same honesty to its fans. When a player is not producing, adjust. When a prospect has not become the star you promised, stop selling the promise as an accomplishment.

Aaron Boone has guided an injury-hit club to October. That matters. Players appear to trust him, and his handling of the staff has helped the Yankees keep winning. He has also made harder lineup choices this year; the demotions and changing roles show he might finally understand how to manage, but for me, I still don't truly see it. My problem is the gap between the action and the public language. Boone’s reflex is to protect his players, reassure everybody, and find the sunny side of another ugly night. I can understand why players appreciate that. Fans who just watched the same failed at-bat for the hundredth time are allowed to find it maddening. Leadership means more than absorbing criticism for the clubhouse. It means making the standard unmistakable.

Joe Torre’s calm felt like control because the club on the field kept backing it up. There was also accountability. Boone’s calm, at its worst, feels like a press conference held in a different ballpark from the game I just watched. There are nights when I want a manager to say plainly what every fan saw: this was not good enough, and the people who keep getting chances must earn the next ones.

That does not mean humiliating Wells or Volpe. It means refusing to treat honesty as disloyalty. When it comes to Boone, there is no accountability. It's called coddling.

Now, Willie Randolph knows what a champion looks like. He lived through the Bronx Zoo, coached the 1996 champions, spent time with this year’s club in spring training, and sees camaraderie and pitching that he believes can carry the Yankees to a title. I respect the firsthand view. He also said his teams were sharper fundamentally.  

The Bronx Zoo was not just a collection of personalities and good chemistry. The 1977 and 1978 Yankees won consecutive World Series. Thurman Munson, Reggie Jackson, Graig Nettles, Ron Guidry, Randolph and the rest did their talking amid the circus by beating the people in the other dugout when the season was on the line. Randolph is entitled to see a resemblance in the room. I am entitled to say that the resemblance is incomplete until this 2026 team does the job.

I also wonder what, exactly, we are being asked to compare. The Bronx Zoo label was born from actual chaos, conflict, talent and championships. This team has an expertly managed image and an offense that can disappear for innings at a time. Calling them equal because they get along and have a deep rotation is like saying a movie poster is as good as the movie. Let me see the ending.

Here's my thing; the uniform is enough reason to root, but it's not enough reason to pretend. Does that make sense? 

I will be there on the couch for the first pitch against Boston. I will celebrate every Rice homer, every Schlittler strikeout, every Lombard play and every unlikely contribution from Volpe or Wells. 

But I am done letting the Yankees tell me that skepticism is a failure of fandom. Loving this team means caring whether the standards match the sales pitch. It means remembering the difference between a player with a great story and a player who has done the job. It means demanding more from Cashman than another clever explanation and more from Boone than another comforting one.

93 wins are real. So is the exhaustion of watching the organization try to sell us devotion to players who have not earned it yet. The 1996 Yankees earned theirs one at-bat and one October win at a time. The Bronx Zoo earned its place in history with championships.

These 2026 Yankees? They have a chance to change the conversation. Good. Let them. But until they do, stop asking me to fall in love with the advertisement. I am watching the games dude. I see everything.

That's my take.

--Robert Casey
Chief & Head Writer, Bleeding Yankee Blue

SABATHIA, BLEEDING YANKEE BLUE & A FULL CIRCLE MOMENT

Some Yankees become favorites because of what they do on the field. CC Sabathia was that guy from the moment he put on pinstripes. He took the ball, carried the pressure, and helped bring a championship back to the Bronx.

But at Bleeding Yankee Blue, our connection to CC and Amber Sabathia became more personal than a box score.

BYB was still young when the Sabathias gave us their time HERE. That was our interview from 2013. We talked about baseball, of course. We also talked about their family, their work helping kids through the PitCCh In Foundation, and how much New York had come to mean to them. They let our readers see the people behind the famous name.

At the end, we asked Amber if they read Bleeding Yankee Blue. She said yes and thanked us for the support. That was a huge moment for us. We were building this place one story and one reader at a time, and the Sabathias knew we were there. 

We will always love this clip of CC speaking about BYB to a reporter years ago is another reminder of that connection. Their generosity toward a growing fan site is something I’ve never forgotten.

We’ve been rooting for the Sabathias ever since. CC gave Yankees fans a pitcher they could count on, but he and Amber also showed us why they were so easy to admire as people. That’s why this honor feels personal to BYB.

Now No. 52 has been retired, and CC has a plaque in Monument Park. The rest of the baseball world sees a Hall of Famer getting the recognition he earned. I see that, too. I also think back to a Christmas morning, an interview we were proud to share, and a family that made time for Bleeding Yankee Blue when we were finding our way.

That’s full circle. Congratulations, CC. You and Amber have always been part of the BYB family. Love you guys!

THE YANKEES GOT PUNCHED, BUT THEN PUNCHED BACK.

The Yankees were embarrassed 10–2 by the Orioles in Friday’s doubleheader opener. Read HERE. Then they came back out and won the nightcap 6–3. That’s the story: a team that could have let one ugly game turn into an ugly day answered with a win.

Was a split what we wanted? Of course not. But after that first game, the Yankees needed to show some fight. They did. They gave their fans a reason to leave the Stadium talking about a victory instead of spending the whole night stewing over a blowout.

Anthony Volpe helped make it happen with a two-run double in the sixth. Good for him. I’m happy to see him deliver in a big spot. But one hit should not turn into another announcement that Volpe has finally figured it out. The recent eight-game batting figures of roughly .200 to .222 that have circulated from StatMuse are a reminder of why fans still question his consistency.  

Volpe gets credit for Friday’s double. The Yankees get credit for the 6–3 win. Now they need to bring that same response to the next game, because a split is only satisfying when it leads to something better.

GAME 1? AN EMBARRASSMENT IN THE BRONX.

The Yankees opened Friday’s doubleheader against the Orioles with a 10–2 loss at Yankee Stadium. Baltimore hit four home runs. Pete Alonso hit two of them. Dylan Beavers added a grand slam. By the time it was over, the Yankees had given their fans a pretty good reason to be concerned as we get closer to the playoffs.

Game 1 was an embarrassment. The Orioles scored ten. The Yankees scored two. Sad.

And please, spare me the “it’s just one game” routine. Yes, the Yankees came back and won the nightcap, 6–3. Good. They needed to. But winning later doesn’t erase how flat and overmatched they looked earlier. Both games count, and so does the impression a team makes when it gets punched in the mouth.

The postseason is almost here. The Yankees should be sharpening their game, showing some urgency and giving opponents reason to fear them. Instead, for one ugly afternoon, they gave the Orioles four trips around the bases on home runs and gave Yankee fans another reason to wonder which version of this team will show up in October.

That first game was ugly. It was unacceptable. And yes, it was embarrassing.

THE YANKEES HAVE AN ACE. WHY IS AARON BOONE HESITATING?

Cam Schlittler has spent the season making the hardest decision in the Yankees’ playoff rotation look easy. He is the American League Cy Young favorite, and the Yankees have a short Wild Card Series to win. Give him the ball in Game 1.

Yet when Bryan Hoch asked Aaron Boone whether Schlittler would start the opener, the answer was: “We’ll see. Not necessarily.” Boone explained that starting Game 1 or Game 2 would leave a pitcher available for the same potential starts in the Division Series. I understand the calendar. I also understand that you have to get to the Division Series first. 

This is what drives me crazy about Boone. A straightforward playoff call becomes a discussion of future matchups and hypothetical schedules. Schlittler has earned the opener with what he has done this season. In a best-of-three series, I want my best pitcher setting the tone before the Yankees have a chance to fall behind.

Then I would go to Carlos Rodón in Game 2. Rodón has put together a remarkably steady run, including 24 consecutive starts allowing no more than three runs as of September 12. That is the kind of reliability I want when momentum is on the line. 

Gerrit Cole’s name and résumé command respect. They should not make this decision for Boone. Cole recently allowed seven home runs across two starts, though he followed that stretch with a stronger outing against Arizona. That is a pitcher I still value. It is not, to me, the strongest case for handing him Game 1 over Schlittler. 

Does Boone worry about Cole’s standing in the clubhouse? Is he waiting for Brian Cashman and the front office to settle the order? I cannot know that, but I will bet it's one of them, cause the dude can't make hard decisions. Boone’s hesitation says it all. His job under playoff pressure is to make the call that gives the Yankees their best chance to win, even if an established ace has to hear that someone else goes first.

To me, this is the roadblock the Yankees keep running into. Boone can explain a decision ten different ways. When October arrives, I want a manager who sees what is in front of him and acts on it.

Start Schlittler. Follow him with Rodón. Make Cole part of the plan without letting his reputation dictate it. If Boone keeps managing for the series after this one before winning the series in front of him, don’t act shocked if the Yankees are home early, off hunting for the winter.

Boone, my friends, is the problem we have in October. That's the bottom line.  

IS JUDGE FINALLY GETTING FED UP WITH BOONE?

Something doesn't smell right here.  And I'm done pretending that every strange exchange between Aaron Judge and Aaron Boone is just another innocent case of poor communication.

Aaron Boone told the world that Judge has a “moderate” calf strain. Judge then stood in front of reporters and said:

“Everybody's ‘moderate’ is a little different... I don't know why he used those words.” 

Read that again. “I don't know why he used those words.” That's Aaron Judge talking about his manager. And here's where it gets interesting. Judge insists he's trying to play in the Wild Card Series. Boone has painted a much less optimistic picture. Judge even said that if Boone says he isn't going to be ready, that's something Judge can't control.

That's tension.

Call it whatever you want. A disagreement. A disconnect. Frustration. I'll call it what I think it is. The beginning of a feud. Because we've seen this before. Last season Boone went on WFAN and announced that he didn't think Judge would return to throwing the way he normally does during the remainder of 2025 while recovering from his flexor strain.

Judge's response? “I don't know why he said that.”

Judge then added something even more revealing: Boone hadn't watched him throw for the previous two weeks. And what did Boone do afterward? He backed off the statement, admitting, “Maybe that's a little overstated.”

Are we seeing the pattern yet? Same subject — Aaron Judge's health. Same problem — Aaron Boone talking publicly and Aaron Judge wondering why the hell he's saying it.

I'm sorry, but that's not normal. Now Judge also said, “Boonie's my guy. I've always got his back.” 

Fine. What do you expect Aaron Judge to say? He's the captain of the New York Yankees. He's not going to walk into a press conference six days before postseason baseball and announce, Yeah, I'm sick of my manager. Judge doesn't operate that way. He's calculated. He's professional. He's careful.

Which is precisely why “I don't know why he used those words” catches my attention.

That's Judge pushing back without detonating the clubhouse. And maybe — just maybe — he's getting tired of Boone speaking for him. Look, I've said this forever about Aaron Boone. He's the perfect manager for this Yankee front office. Not necessarily because he's some brilliant baseball mind. He is not. It's because he plays the role.

Brian Cashman runs the operation. The organization establishes the message. Boone walks into the press room every day, delivers it, protects everybody above him and absorbs whatever criticism comes his way.

He's the mouthpiece. That's why the Yankees love him. Cashman has publicly praised Boone for controlling the clubhouse and specifically cited his temperament when explaining the organization's faith in him. The Yankees rewarded Boone with a contract extension through 2027. But there's one enormous problem with having your manager serve as the organizational mouthpiece:

The mouthpiece has to know when to shut his mouth. Why announce that Judge has a “moderate” strain when just days earlier Boone himself declined to reveal the severity of that exact injury?

That's another part of this story that shouldn't be ignored. When Judge initially went on the IL, Boone specifically wouldn't provide the severity and wouldn't predict a return date. “I don't have a timeline on him,” Boone said. “I'm not going to predict anything.”

Great. Then don't.

Yet days later we're suddenly getting “moderate” from Boone. And Judge is wondering why. So am I.

Look, that's my question. If you haven't watched Judge throw, don't announce how he's going to throw. If you're not going to reveal the severity of his calf injury, don't suddenly characterize its severity. If the player believes he can return and you believe he can't, maybe figure that out behind closed doors before everybody starts talking to reporters.

This is the manager of the New York Yankees. He's been doing a lousy job since 2018 and at this point we all know Judge is the leader here. I mean how many communication mulligans does Boone get? And how many times are we going to hear Aaron Judge publicly question something his manager has said before we're allowed to acknowledge that maybe there's something happening between these two?

I'm acknowledging it. I think there's something there. I think Judge is frustrated. I think Boone talks too much. And I think Judge's carefully chosen words are becoming increasingly difficult to dismiss.

Does that mean they're screaming at each other behind closed doors? I have no idea. Does it mean Judge hates Boone? Nobody outside that clubhouse knows. But a feud doesn't have to begin with somebody flipping a table. Sometimes it starts quietly. A comment. A contradiction. A little public pushback.

“I don't know why he said that.”

Then a year later:

“I don't know why he used those words.”

That's enough for me to start asking questions. And here's the biggest one: How long before Aaron Judge stops wondering publicly why Aaron Boone keeps saying these things and starts wondering privately why the hell he's still his manager?

It's a good question right? I want the answer.

BEN RICE WASN’T THE YANKEES’ CHOSEN ONE & THAT’S THE POINT

The Yankees love a prospect with a story they can sell. Just ask Anthony Volpe's family. Seriously though, a first-round pick. A familiar name. A future star before he’s taken a major league swing.

Ben Rice wasn’t that guy.

Rice played just 30 college games at Dartmouth after the pandemic wrecked his schedule. The Yankees took him in the 12th round of the 2021 draft, 363rd overall. Nobody was clearing a path for him to the Bronx. That's an important line... Nobody.

The only reason the Yankees took a chance on him was that area scout Matt Hyde noticed his strong performance in wood-bat summer collegiate leagues, where he got the reps he missed in college. Hyde saw power, followed the kid.  It wasn't a long, drawn out courtship, it was a guess. Let's call it what it was. Well, I am glad Hyde guessed right. 

But here’s what drives me crazy: Rice had to make himself impossible to ignore. The bat was real. The work was real. Yet he came into the organization as a 12th-round pick, while the Yankees have spent years telling us who their special prospects are.

Anthony Volpe. First-round pick. New Jersey kid. Yankees fan. Great story. The organization praised his tools and built enormous expectations around him from the start. And yes, his amateur résumé gave them reasons to draft him. But at some point, the story has to step aside and the results have to take over. He just isn't what Hyde claimed he was. That's a fact.

And that’s my problem with the Yankees. Once they decide a player is a favorite, they seem determined to be proven right. When a guy like Rice comes along, he has to do the proving for them... and boy, has he done it.

Rice became a 2026 All-Star by doing what good hitters do: showing up, taking his swings and producing. He has power, he can hit, and he carries himself like a guy who still remembers what it felt like just to get drafted. He said he was excited to be picked in the 12th round and wanted to make the most of his chance. That’s the kind of attitude you want in your clubhouse.

Matt Hyde guessed on Ben Rice, but Rice wasn't even on the radar, not like Volpe. So, I mean sure, credit the scout, but credit Rice even more for breaking through and forcing a conversation.

Now I’d like the Yankees to learn something from Rice. A first-round label doesn’t win games. A prospect ranking doesn’t drive in runs. And being somebody’s favorite doesn’t mean a damn thing once the pitcher lets go of the ball.

Ben Rice earned his place the hard way. Maybe it’s time the Yankees started valuing that as much as the players they picked first.

THE YANKEES LET IT FLY

The Yankees needed a response after Tampa Bay celebrated clinching the division Tuesday night.

They got one.

The Yankees blasted the Rays 9-2 on Wednesday, launching four home runs and making sure this one was never really in doubt.

And Ben Rice was the star of the show.

Rice launched his 40th home run on the first pitch of the game and then did it again later, finishing 3-for-4 with two bombs. He now has 41 home runs on the season.

That's HUGE.

Rice has become one of the most dangerous power bats on this team, and the timing couldn't be better. If he's getting hot heading into October, the Yankees could have a very interesting weapon in their lineup.

Ryan McMahon added five RBIs, including a grand slam, while George Lombard Jr. also went deep.

Gerrit Cole did his part, striking out eight over 5⅔ innings.

But let's be honest—this was the Ben Rice show.

And the Yankees certainly won't complain if he keeps swinging like this.

WHY IS BOONE NOW FORCING VOLPE AT THIRD BASE?

I'm done.

At some point, the Yankees have to stop pretending Anthony Volpe is something he hasn't been. And apparently, that point still hasn't arrived. And now Aaron Boone is telling us Anthony Volpe will likely move to third base while George Lombard Jr. stays at shortstop — because apparently the Yankees still haven't run out of ways to keep Volpe in the lineup.

Third base? Seriously? After everything we've watched from Volpe over the last three years, the Yankees' answer is to move him around the infield and keep finding ways to get him into the lineup?

This is getting ridiculous. WE ALL SAW WHAT VOLPE WAS, Let's not rewrite history now. When Anthony Volpe was at his lowest point, Yankees fans absolutely hammered him.

And why wouldn't we? The guy couldn't hit consistently. He made far too many errors. He looked completely overmatched at times. And three years into his major-league career, we were still talking about the same problems that were supposed to be fixed by then.

And one of the biggest problem has always been the arm. Volpe has legitimate throwing limitations, and his Statcast arm-strength numbers have ranked near the bottom of the league. His 2025 arm-strength percentile was just 8th percentile, with his 2026 mark listed at 13th percentile.

Then came the shoulder problem. Volpe dealt with a torn labrum and underwent surgery. So explain this to me why are you taking a guy with a questionable throwing arm and moving him to third base?

That's where this entire thing falls apart. Every time Volpe struggles, the Yankees seem to find another explanation. Maybe he's young. Maybe he needs more time. Maybe the pressure of New York is getting to him. Maybe he's injured. Maybe he'll figure it out. Maybe he'll become the player everyone thought he would be.

Enough.

At some point, potential stops being an excuse. Volpe isn't a rookie anymore. This isn't spring training. This isn't some 20-year-old prospect getting his first taste of the majors. We've seen him. We've seen the bat. We've seen the errors. We've seen the throwing issues. We've seen the inconsistency.

And we've seen enough baseball to know that sometimes a player simply doesn't become what everyone hoped he would become.

That's not personal. That's baseball.

The Yankees apparently believe George Lombard Jr. is good enough to take over shortstop. I'm thrilled. But why does that automatically mean Anthony Volpe needs to play third?

Ryan McMahon is right there. Is McMahon perfect?

No. Is he my favorite third baseman in baseball? Obviously not. But he's a veteran major-league third baseman who has spent his career playing the position. He's experienced. So why are the Yankees trying to turn Volpe into something else?

Why are we once again watching the organization bend the roster around Anthony Volpe instead of simply asking the most basic question: Who gives us the best chance to win right now?

That's supposed to be the job. Not protecting a former top prospect.

This is where I put the blame on Brian Cashman and Aaron Boone. Because this isn't just a Volpe problem anymore. It's an organizational problem.  The Yankees seem determined to find a position for this guy rather than simply determining whether he deserves one. STOP CONFUSING DRAFT STATUS WITH PRODUCTION... that is backwards.

Look, I get it, Volpe was a highly touted prospect according to our scouts, who, after our investigation, concluded it was all favoritism... according to our findings HERE.

But ok, he was supposed to be the future. But the hype of Volpe doesn't win baseball games. Production does. That's what matters. And Volpe has had plenty of opportunities to provide it.

Instead, we've spent three years having the same conversations over and over again. I'm tired.

The Yankees are trying to keep Volpe in the lineup because they're afraid to admit that maybe the experiment hasn't worked. My opinion of course. I'm sorry, but that's not my problem as a fan.  Do the Yankees gauge their audience? About 70% of the fans don't even want Volpe.

I don't care where Anthony Volpe was drafted. I don't care how highly he was once ranked. I don't care what the Yankees thought he was going to become. I care about what he gives this team right now. And that's the standard Cashman and Boone should be using too.

 I was patient with Volpe. But eventually, you run out of excuses. Volpe has had three years to establish himself as the Yankees' shortstop, and now the idea of him at third base with a weak arm doesn't even make sense. Not to me, not to anyone with a brain in their head and the eye test on lock.

The bottom line is discussing whether he should move to third base tells you everything you need to know.

If McMahon is available, play McMahon. If not, use the more athletic utility man, Jose Caballero. And if Volpe has a role on this team, then make it a role that actually makes sense... the bench.

The Yankees don't owe Anthony Volpe a starting job. They owe Yankees fans a team built to win.

And if Cashman and Boone can't separate what they wanted Anthony Volpe to become from what he has actually been, then maybe the biggest problem isn't Anthony Volpe anymore.

Maybe it's the people who refuse to move on from him. 

SHOWALTER KNOWS BASEBALL. MAYBE THE YANKEES SHOULD LISTEN.

Buck Showalter believes the Yankees made a mistake bringing Aaron Judge back without a minor league rehab assignment. After months away with a rib injury, Judge returned to the lineup, played seven games and landed back on the injured list with a calf strain.

“When you start talking about the calf, that’s a different animal,” Showalter said on Foul Territory.

Buck’s point is that Judge’s new injury brings a different problem. The rib injury kept him out for months; the calf now affects the running and movement required to play. Showalter believes a rehab assignment would have let Judge build back up in games before taking on a major league workload. He isn’t claiming that the calf strain proves the Yankees caused it. He’s questioning how they handled the return.

And Buck has earned the right to ask. He spent 22 seasons managing in the majors, including four with the Yankees. He won Manager of the Year four times with four different clubs: the Yankees, Rangers, Orioles and Mets. In 2022, he guided the Mets to 101 wins. That’s a real manager and a real baseball mind speaking from decades in the dugout.

Judge wanted to play. Every Yankees fan wanted him back. But wanting your captain in the lineup and preparing him for the demands of playing every day are two different things.

Would a rehab assignment have prevented the calf strain? Nobody knows. Judge is hurt again, October is almost here, and Showalter’s question deserves an answer.

The bad decision making from this front office is never more evident than the last few years. No one is paying attention, and it's getting worse. 

We. Need. Change.

RODÓN STOPPED THE RAYS. BOONE COULDN’T STOP THE CELEBRATION

For one game today the Yankees looked ready to make Tampa Bay wait.

Carlos Rodón was terrific in the doubleheader opener. He gave the Yankees eight scoreless innings, allowed just three hits and didn’t walk a batter. Cody Bellinger hit a two-run homer, David Bednar finished the shutout, and the Yankees won 2-0. It was crisp, decisive baseball. It also required Rodón to be nearly perfect because the lineup managed only five hits.

And Anthony Volpe? 0-for-3. Another empty line on a day when every run mattered. I’m tired of being told to see the player the Yankees hope he’ll become while watching the player standing in the batter’s box. Dude’s not good period. If Boone is making October decisions based on faith in Volpe instead of what he’s producing, fans have every reason to worry.

The nightcap gave those fans plenty more to worry about. Drew Rasmussen carried a no-hitter into the seventh and struck out 11. Heliot Ramos finally broke it up with a double, and George Lombard Jr. drove in the Yankees’ lone run. Meanwhile, Taylor Walls helped Tampa Bay build its lead, and Yandy Díaz drove in four. The Rays won 6-1, clinched the AL East, and celebrated at Yankee Stadium. That’s the image fans are left with after a split that briefly felt promising.

Now comes the familiar request to stay calm because the Yankees made the playoffs. Fine. They made it. But October doesn’t hand out runs for regular-season wins, and it doesn’t give a manager extra time to figure things out. Aaron Judge is expected to miss the Wild Card series. The lineup just produced one run and three hits in the game that decided the division. A fan looking at that and feeling uneasy is paying attention.

And that brings me to Aaron Boone. His teams win plenty of games over a long season. I know the number. What I want to know is why, when the pressure rises, I’m supposed to trust him to get the crucial decisions right. A manager is judged by what happens when there’s no comfortable margin left, and Boone has done little to earn that trust from me. Why does Hal Steinbrenner continue to allow Boone to manage this team? How many anxious Octobers does he need to see before he asks whether regular-season success is enough?

Rodón showed what the Yankees can look like at their best. A few hours later, the Rays showed them what it looks like to finish the job. The Yankees still have a postseason ahead of them, but this is a rocky road to get there. Right now, being a Yankees fan feels less like anticipation and more like bracing for the next bump.

SHOULD YANKEE FANS PANIC YET?

The Yankees had this game. Then, almost on cue, they gave it away.

New York jumped out to a 4-1 lead after Heliot Ramos, George Lombard Jr. and Spencer Jones all homered in the third inning. The kids supplied the power, the Yankees grabbed control—and then everything collapsed.

Arizona scored seven unanswered runs, with Nolan Arenado delivering the crushing blow: a fifth-inning grand slam off Brent Headrick that turned a three-run Yankees lead into another ugly loss. The Diamondbacks won 8-4 and took the series. Once Arenado’s ball landed in the seats, the Yankees never answered. Five Arizona relievers shut them out over the final 6 1/3 innings. 

So, do we panic yet?

Maybe “panic” is too dramatic, but concern is absolutely justified. This is no longer about one bad inning in Arizona. The Yankees are now six games behind Tampa Bay with only seven remaining, and their shot at the American League East is barely breathing. They will almost certainly enter October through the Wild Card door—assuming they don’t stumble even further.

And that brings us back to Aaron Boone.

Boone has won plenty of regular-season games. His defenders will always point to the record, the playoff appearances and the consistency. But managing the Yankees isn’t about piling up victories from April through August. It’s about executing when the pressure arrives.

Boone has repeatedly shown that when a game tightens, his decision-making does too. Sunday was another example. The Yankees had a lead, the inning was slipping away, and Boone entrusted the game to an overworked Headrick, making his 79th appearance. By the time Boone reacted, Arenado had already put Arizona ahead for good.

That is Boone’s greatest weakness, and it will always make him a poor manager in my eyes—regardless of how many regular-season wins appear next to his name. The postseason exposes hesitation, questionable bullpen choices and managers who fail to feel the moment. We have watched that movie before.

The Yankees now head into a four-game series against Tampa Bay. Boone says they need to “kick their butt.” That sounds wonderful. But this team doesn’t need another Boone slogan. It needs urgency, clean execution and a manager capable of staying ahead of the game instead of reacting after it has already been lost.

Should Yankee fans panic?

Not yet. But if this is how Boone and the Yankees plan to handle October pressure, we already know how the story ends.

The dude can't close. Yes, we clinched a playoff spot, but that means nothing if we can't win it all.  The dude's not George Patton... he not even close.

GREAT PITCHING ALONE WON’T SAVE THE YANKEES

There is no question the Yankees have the pitching to make a serious run in October. The rotation is strong, the bullpen can shorten games, and when everything is clicking, this staff can shut down anybody.

But here’s the problem: pitching cannot carry a dead offense forever.

The loss of Aaron Judge changes everything. He is not simply the Yankees’ best hitter—he is the one player opposing pitchers fear. When Judge is missing, the lineup becomes easier to navigate. Pitchers can attack everyone else without worrying about the big man waiting around the corner.

That puts even more pressure on Ben Rice.

Rice has shown that he can provide legitimate power and change a game with one swing. Now the Yankees need him to prove he can do it when the pressure rises. Cody Bellinger needs to contribute. The middle of the order needs to produce. Someone must take control instead of waiting for Judge to return and rescue everybody.

The Yankees can celebrate their record and recent winning streak, but October does not care what happened in September. One quiet night at the plate can end a season. Two quiet nights can send everyone home.

This pitching staff is good enough to win a championship. But if Rice and the rest of these bats don’t step up, it won’t matter.

You cannot pitch your way around an offense that disappears. And without Judge, that is exactly what the Yankees are in danger of becoming.

DEVERS TO THE YANKEES? DO WE REALLY NEED THIS?

Here we go.

Rafael Devers and the Yankees are being mentioned in the same sentence, and naturally Yankee fans are going to start dreaming about home runs into the short porch.

ESPN's Buster Olney recently floated Devers as a potential fit for the Yankees, reportedly saying, "He would be perfect with the Yankees."

Perfect? I'm not so sure.

Nobody needs to convince me Rafael Devers can hit.  The bat isn't my problem. The baggage is. Remember how this whole thing with Boston went down?

When the Red Sox signed Alex Bregman and wanted Devers to move away from third base, Devers publicly pushed back. Then, after Triston Casas went down and Boston approached him about potentially playing first base, Devers wasn't exactly thrilled with that idea either.

Eventually Boston shipped its $313.5 million star to San Francisco. Now we're supposed to look at all of that and say, You know what the Yankees need? Rafael Devers.

Do they? That's the question. This isn't fantasy baseball. You don't just collect names and home-run totals. You're building a clubhouse. And if you're Brian Cashman, before you even think about calling Buster Posey, you'd better know exactly which Rafael Devers you're getting.

Because New York isn't Boston and it sure isn't San Francisco.

If Devers didn't like questions about his position in Boston, wait until he's surrounded by 25 reporters after an 0-for-4 night in the Bronx. That's what concerns me. They need guys willing to do whatever is necessary to win.

Could Devers come here, DH, play some first base and absolutely rake in Yankee Stadium? Of course. Would I love his bat between some of the hitters in this lineup? Absolutely.

But I'm not giving away the farm and taking on a massive contract simply because somebody showed me his Baseball Reference page.

I want to know about the guy. I want to know about the teammate.

And most importantly, I want to know what happens the first time Aaron Boone tells Rafael Devers he's doing something Rafael Devers doesn't particularly want to do. Because we've seen that movie before.

Maybe Devers comes to New York, settles in, lets Judge lead and hits 40 bombs. Great. But before Yankee fans start Photoshopping him into pinstripes, somebody needs to ask the question nobody seems interested in asking:

Do the Yankees really need Rafael Devers... or do they just need Rafael Devers' bat? Those are two very different things.

And after everything we've watched this organization get wrong over the years, that's a distinction Brian Cashman better understand before he picks up the phone.

YANKEES WALKED OFF IN ARIZONA AS VOLPE BEGINS ANOTHER FREE FALL

The Yankees didn’t just lose to the Diamondbacks on Saturday night. They let a winnable game slip away at exactly the wrong time.

Arizona beat the Yankees 5-3 when pinch-hitter Pavin Smith launched a two-run, walk-off home run off Michael Fulmer in the bottom of the ninth inning. The 391-foot shot came immediately after Fulmer issued a controversial leadoff walk to Ildemaro Vargas.

Just like that, it was over. A Boone decision. Remember this as we are entering October baseball.

Cam Schlittler once again did enough to give the Yankees a chance. The rookie allowed only three hits over six innings, surrendering three runs—but just one earned—while lowering his American League-leading ERA to 1.94.

The Yankees didn’t help him.

A Schlittler fielding error opened the door for Arizona in the fifth inning, and Jordan Lawlar made them pay with a two-run triple. New York eventually grabbed a 3-2 lead behind solo home runs from Heliot Ramos and Austin Wells, but the Diamondbacks tied it again before Smith ended it in the ninth. By the way, Wells? Batting .185. Why in the freaking world so I care about a solo homer from this guy once a week if he can't even hit consistently?

The loss dropped the Yankees five games behind Tampa Bay in the American League East with only eight games remaining. Yes, the Yankees have already clinched a playoff spot. No, that doesn’t make losses like this acceptable—not with the division and home-field positioning still hanging in the balance.

And while everyone talks about the walk-off, let’s not act like we don’t see what is happening with Anthony Volpe.

Over his last seven games, Volpe is batting .217 with a .280 on-base percentage and a .304 slugging percentage. He has five hits in 23 at-bats, no home runs and only two RBIs.

That is not production. Those are “not a Major League player” numbers.

Once again, Volpe put together a small stretch of respectable baseball, and Yankee fans immediately declared that he had turned the corner. The broadcasts celebrated him. His defenders rushed back out. Everyone wanted to believe the Yankees had finally been proven right.

Once again, they were fooled.

Now Volpe is free-falling right back toward the same offensive numbers that have followed him throughout his career. This is the problem with judging a player by a handful of games instead of the complete body of work. A hot week doesn’t erase months—or years—of inconsistency. You need to watch the long game.

The Yankees have protected Volpe, promoted Volpe and made excuses for Volpe. Other players are forced to earn their opportunities. Volpe is handed his and then given endless time to justify them.

Meanwhile, the lineup continues to disappear for long stretches. Three runs weren’t enough Saturday night, just as three runs frequently won’t be enough in October. The Yankees have excellent pitching, but even excellent pitching needs support. Schlittler gave them six strong innings, and they still found a way to lose.

Most Yankee outlets will focus on the drama of the walk-off and move along.

Bleeding Yankee Blue will focus on the problem that refuses to disappear. Anthony Volpe still isn’t producing—and pretending otherwise won’t help the Yankees win in October.

YANKEES WIN BIG—BUT JUDGE’S INJURY CHANGES EVERYTHING

Give the Yankees credit. They are finding ways to win, and Friday night’s 9-2 beatdown of the Diamondbacks was another impressive example.

New York buried Arizona with five runs in the first inning and never looked back. Ben Rice launched his 39th home run and added a triple. George Lombard Jr. drove in three runs, including two on his own homer. Gerrit Cole finally looked like Gerrit Cole again, allowing two runs over six innings while becoming the winningest No. 1 overall draft pick in baseball history.

That is the formula the Yankees need: hit early, pitch well and stop making every game feel like open-heart surgery.

But let’s not dance around the real problem. Aaron Judge is hurt again, this time with a calf strain, and he is headed to the injured list. The Yankees can survive a few regular-season games without Judge. Winning four postseason series without him—or with a compromised version of him—is another story.

I don’t believe this team can win it all without a healthy Judge. Rice, Lombard and the rest can contribute, but Judge is the force that changes an opponent’s entire game plan.

Then there is Aaron Boone. Once October arrives and every pitching change, lineup decision and defensive substitution matters, we already know what happens. Boone overthinks, waits too long or finds some new way to blow it under pressure.

So yes, applaud the Yankees. They are winning, showing depth and refusing to fold. But if Judge isn’t right—and Boone is still Boone—the ending may be painfully familiar.

THE YANKEES FAILED OSWALDO CABRERA

There are Yankee moves that make you scratch your head. Then there are Yankee moves that make you wonder if anybody in that front office actually remembers what building a baseball team is supposed to look like.

Designating Oswaldo Cabrera for assignment falls into the second category.

The Yankees DFA’d Cabrera Wednesday to clear a 40-man roster spot for Clarke Schmidt. Technically, that’s the transaction.

But this is bigger than a roster spot.

This is about how the Yankees continue to treat certain players like disposable parts while seemingly giving others every opportunity imaginable to prove they belong.

And Cabrera deserved better.

This is a guy who did whatever the Yankees asked him to do.

Third base? Sure. Second? No problem. Shortstop? He’d do it. Outfield? Give him a glove. Sit on the bench for a week and then suddenly get thrown into the lineup somewhere he hadn’t played in a month?

Oswaldo Cabrera would smile and say, “Let’s go.” Was he a superstar? Of course not. That’s not the point.

Cabrera was exactly the kind of player championship teams need — a versatile, energetic utility player who understood his role, never complained and was willing to do just about anything to help the New York Yankees win.

And after battling back from that horrific ankle injury, Cabrera went to Triple-A and hit .288 with a .790 OPS this season.

His reward? DFA. Beautiful.

Meanwhile, we continue to hear about Anthony Volpe. 

CC Sabathia recently talked about Volpe’s “perseverance and determination,” and look, I understand CC’s point. Volpe didn't quit when the Yankees finally sent him to Triple-A. He worked. He made adjustments. He learned second base even though he didn't want to. He hit the baseball down there.

Good for him. Seriously. But perseverance cannot become another excuse for pretending the previous four years didn't happen. Volpe entered this latest opportunity with an 85 wRC+ across parts of four major-league seasons. This year, before his demotion, he was hitting .240/.325/.322 with one home run in 56 games.

At some point, Major League Baseball has to be about major-league production. And let's also stop rewriting the reason Volpe came back.

Jazz Chisholm Jr. hurt his thumb and went on the injured list. The Yankees suddenly needed another second baseman. José Caballero had already stepped in at second, but Caballero's value to this roster is his ability to move around the diamond.

So Volpe got the call. That's roster necessity. That's different from the Yankees suddenly deciding Anthony Volpe had conquered Triple-A and earned his triumphant return to the Bronx.

Maybe Volpe has figured something out. Who knows. I really don't care anymore.

The Yankees' fascination with making Anthony Volpe happen has gone on long enough that fans have every right to question why the standards appear different depending on whose name is on the back of the uniform.

Because that's what bothers me about Cabrera. Oswaldo Cabrera earned the right to be useful to this team. He accepted every role. He played everywhere. He came back from a devastating injury. He produced in Scranton. And the Yankees still decided he was expendable.

The Yankees decided preserving their pitching depth and keeping their other roster possibilities open was more important than keeping Cabrera on the 40-man roster.

That's their right. But fans have the right to call it what it looks like, too. Another good Yankee gets squeezed while the organization continues bending over backward to find roles and opportunities for players it has decided are part of the plan.

That's the problem. It's not that Anthony Volpe shouldn't have been recalled when Jazz went down. The roster situation made the move understandable.

It's that Oswaldo Cabrera seemingly never received the same runway.

One player gets patience. Another gets DFA'd. One gets talked about in terms of determination and development. The other does everything asked of him, fights his way back from a gruesome injury, hits .288 in Triple-A and gets shown the door.

Oswaldo Cabrera wasn't Aaron Judge. Nobody ever claimed he was. He was something every good baseball team needs. A good Yankee. A useful Yankee. A selfless Yankee.

And once again, the Yankees somehow found a way to make that guy the expendable one. Maybe another organization claims Cabrera and actually appreciates what he brings to a roster.

I hope they do. Because Oswaldo Cabrera earned his opportunity. The Yankees just decided someone else deserved it more. And we've seen that movie before.

YANKEES FIRE FIVE SCOUTS; HYDE & HENDRY SURVIVE

The Yankees are not waiting for the offseason to begin cleaning house.

According to industry sources, the organization has dismissed five members of its international scouting department as part of a planned overhaul. Gone are José Sabino; Arturo Peña Jr., the club’s Cibao-area scout in the Dominican Republic; Santo Domingo-area scout Moises Brito; video assistant Miguel Mojica; and Venezuela supervisor José Gavidia.

Those dismissals came just days after the Yankees separated from longtime international scout Victor Mata, who spent more than 30 years with the organization. Mata reportedly played a role in evaluating and signing Robinson Canó, Alfonso Soriano and Gary Sánchez.

That is a significant shakeup—and the timing is impossible to ignore. The regular season is not even over, the Yankees are headed toward October and the organization has offered no public explanation for the sudden changes.

Clearly, somebody inside the Yankee hierarchy believes the scouting operation needs fixing.

Us here at Bleeding Yankee Blue has questioned Yankee scouts and their evaluation process for years. Most recently, we examined the unusual favoritism surrounding Anthony Volpe and questioned how he became the Yankees’ starting shortstop after being rushed through Triple-A.

That brings me to Matt Hyde and Jim Hendry.

Both men remain employed by the Yankees.

Our investigation in, HOW YANKEE SCOUTS LOST THEIR WAY IN THE VOLPE RECRUITMENT detailed Hyde’s longstanding relationship with Volpe and his relentless internal campaign to promote him. Hendry, meanwhile, developed a close relationship with the Volpe family before the draft and was reportedly present years later when Volpe learned he had made the Major League roster.

Maybe the Yankees see nothing wrong with any of that. I do.

If the organization is willing to overhaul its international scouting department and dismiss longtime employees, it is fair to ask why Hyde and Hendry have escaped scrutiny after becoming so personally invested in a player whose performance has never matched the enormous organizational hype.

Perhaps they are simply praying that Volpe eventually becomes the star they promised everyone he would be. If that happens, they can declare victory and skate.

Until then, the question remains:

Why were five scouts fired while Hyde and Hendry are still collecting Yankee paychecks? My opinion? I find it weird.

Stay tuned.